Cellular telephones are typically manufactured and shipped in a non-activated condition. When the cellular telephone is purchased by a customer, the customer must arrange for a telephone number to be assigned to the cellular telephone and for programming and activation of the cellular telephone.
In one example of a typical prior art situation, the customer purchases the cellular telephone from a retailer. The retailer collects specified information, such as a name, an address, a home telephone number, an office telephone number, a social security or other government identification number, a credit card number, etc. The retailer then sends this information to a customer activation center (CAC). The CAC performs a credit check on the customer, assigns a cellular telephone number to the customer, and informs the retailer of the cellular telephone number. The retailer then programs the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone and advises the customer of the new cellular telephone number. However, the retailer typically receives a fee for programming the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone. This increases the cost to the customer or decreases the revenue to the cellular telephone carrier company. In addition, the customer must wait until this has been done before the customer can use the cellular telephone. Therefore, one problem to be addressed by the present invention is removing the need for the retailer to program the cellular telephone.
In another example of a typical prior art situation, the customer orders the cellular telephone, such as directly from the telephone company or from a mail order service. When the cellular telephone arrives the customer must arrange to obtain a cellular telephone number for the cellular telephone and to program the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone. As in the first example, a service organization which performs or arranges for a cellular telephone number or which does the programming typically receives a fee for programming the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone. This increases the cost to the customer or decreases the revenue to the cellular telephone carrier company. Therefore, another problem to be addressed by the present invention is removing the need for an intermediate business or organization to obtain a cellular telephone number or to program the cellular telephone.
In still another example of a typical prior art situation, as discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,485,505, the customer purchases a cellular telephone from any desired location and then directly calls the CAC, either using the cellular telephone or another telephone. The cellular telephone has a dummy Mobile Identification Number (MIN) which allows the cellular telephone to access the cellular telephone network. This feature eliminates the need for the services of an intermediate business or organization because the customer communicates directly with the CAC. The CAC performs the credit check and assigns the cellular telephone number to the cellular telephone. The customer then manually programs the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone, either by using the instruction manual or by listening to instructions from the CAC. Alternatively, the cellular telephone programming may allow the CAC to remotely program the cellular telephone number into the cellular telephone. This prior art method eliminates the need for the retailer or a service provider to program the cellular telephone. However, some customers encounter difficulty in performing the programming because of unfamiliarity with the concept of programming or because of inadequate instructions in the instruction manual. In addition, in order for the CAC to assist the customer in programming the cellular telephone the customer must be able to tell the CAC the make and, in some instances, the model of the cellular telephone. The make may be obvious if the cellular telephone was sold under the label of the manufacturer, but may not be obvious if the cellular telephone was sold under a private label. The model number, and any revision number, may not be listed or may be difficult to determine without opening the case of the cellular telephone, which may void the warranty. Therefore, another problem addressed by the present invention is enabling the customer activation center to remotely program the cellular telephone and to assist the customer in programming the cellular telephone without the customer knowing the make or model of the cellular telephone.
Another problem is that the customer may lose the instruction manual for the cellular telephone. Then, when the customer wants to use some special feature, such as storing a number for memory dialing (speed dialing), the customer does not know how to access the feature. It is possible that the customer may be able to find someone in the cellular service provider office who knows how to access the feature if the customer knows the make and model. However, as indicated above, the make and model may be difficult for the customer to determine. Therefore, another problem addressed by the present invention is the ability to provide the customer with assistance concerning the operation of the cellular telephone even if the customer has lost the instruction manual and does not know the make or model of the cellular telephone.